part0019

Ethan had had a shit night's sleep, but it was worth it. Arietta lay on his cot instead of the submerged platform, having not shifted for a good 12 hours. Instead, she had focused on learning as much as she could. He had watched with a sense of pride as she had taken each lesson in her stride.

Her skill as a new witch was surprisingly advanced for someone who had never used her powers before.

Since the kiss they had shared, Ethan had not touched her. He had wanted to leave his laptop and books numerous times to go over to her and pull her into his arms and kiss her until she moaned his name, but he had resisted. Her learning her magic was more important. Yet the urge only grew stronger.

Ethan had never done any research into warlock mating or witch mating. He had never associated himself with that. If he were honest, he had accepted the fact that he would never find anyone.

Yet now… now he wanted to know everything there was to know about mating. He also needed to figure out a way to tell Arietta. How did he explain it to someone who he knew, deep in his soul, was the woman meant for him?

Ethan had found one piece of script that could possibly help with the curse, but he didn't quite understand how. Something about a blood bond. He had printed it off and would see if she wanted to try it. After all, it was her curse and her life. Even though he wanted to be in it, he would never force her to make any decisions.

Sighing, Ethan looked up again from the laptop to see Arietta patting a now bright purple Dave on the head and waving to Grundlepus as he headed towards the passageway that would lead up to the house above. Neither he nor Arietta had ventured up there since he had arrived or since she had stopped shifting. They seemed to just enjoy being in the cavern. Maeve had sent word that she would leave them to it unless something catastrophic happened, and that she was finally joining in with the pirate reunion in the town, so she would be out for a while. He watched as the krackens sank below the water, and Arietta finally turned to look in his direction. He smiled brightly at her, and she smiled back, yet it didn't reach her eyes, and that worried him.

“Arietta,” he called out. “I've found something.” He would start with what he had found and then progress onto the mating subject.

Ethan was nervous. What if she rejected him? He had come to care for her deeply since he had arrived, and now couldn't imagine her not being in his life.

As she walked over, he noticed again that even since their kiss her skin was glowing and healthy, her hair shining in the light of the cavern, and she seemed to have gained weight. She had been sexy before, yet now… Ethan wanted to groan as her hips swayed on approach. Her curves were mouth-wateringly alluring and had him clenching his fists.

Damn, she was stunning, too beautiful for words and admittedly above his reach. He had heard a saying once, by a mortal, and he found he now understood it more. Ethan was punching above his weight.

“What’s up?” Arietta asked as soon as she reached him. She looked rested, her eyes bright.

“Sit down, love,” he asked and turned in his chair to face her. The cot was at least high enough that they were at equal heights. “I found this as a way to break the curse.” Ethan handed her the paper he had printed off and watched as her eyes scanned the page.

“A blood bond?” she asked, and he nodded.

“Yes. Your curse was created using blood magic, which bonded you to the siren,” he stated.

“The curse… don't give it a name,” she grumbled out as she looked at the page again.

“Okay, the…” he paused, trying to think of another word to use, “hex,” he stated, and looked at Arietta. She shrugged and he continued. “It was created with blood and the only sure way to break it is to simply replace the bond with something else.” He paused and waited till she looked up at him.

“It can't be your family,” he stated. “It has to be another magical being other than a witch.” He wanted to say straight off the bat that he would do it. She was his mate and it was his job. But he didn’t know how to bring it up without spooking her.

“Okay,” she said quietly, and then stared at the page in her hand. When she kept staring, Ethan got up.

“I will keep looking. I will find something else.” Disappointment filled him. In an ideal world, he wanted to be the one to bond to her. To not only save her from the curse but to have her connected to him.

“Ethan,” she called out, and he felt a hand on his arm. He turned to see her looking up at him, her face a mask of uneasiness.

“Yes, love.” His gruff voice didn't sound like him. When the hell had this witch become so important to him? Without knowing and with only one kiss, she had wormed her way under his skin and into his heart.

“This blood bond—what exactly does it mean?” she asked tentatively.

Ethan bent down, took the hand she had placed on his arm, and clasped it within his own. “It bonds you to the other. You will always know where they are and will be able to tell if they are happy or sad,” he stated honestly. She had to make the decision, and she would need all the information. “If the bond is strong enough, sometimes the bonded can hear each other's thoughts.”

She nodded, and Ethan couldn't help but caress the skin of her hand with his thumb. “So, it’s like marriage.”

“I wouldn't say marriage,” Ethan answered. “Marriage can be broken, undone. A blood bond cannot be. Once completed, it’s forever.”

“Oh,” was all the response Arietta gave him. She had taken her bottom lip between her teeth and was chewing. Gently, Ethan reached up and tugged her lip free, running a thumb over where she had bitten before she tilted her chin to look up at him.

“I will find something else. I will keep looking. You don't have to do this. It was the first possibility I found.” Ethan hated seeing the look of uncertainty on her face.

“But what if there is no other way? What if this is it?” Her shoulders sagged. “Besides, who would want to bond with me like that? The only person before Maeve who was in my life was my father, and he was the one who did this to me. I was never allowed friends or boyfriends.” A sigh left her that hit Ethan right in the chest. Cupping her cheek, he turned her face until her gaze met his.

“I would, love,” he admitted, and for a moment, it felt like a weight had lifted from his shoulders. Surely revealing he would happily bond with her for life would make her aware of his feelings for her.